New Daddy Crash
Location: Clackamas County, Oregon Date: March 21st, 1991 Story During the pre-dawn hours on March 21st, 1991 in Clackamas County, Oregon, Joe Shipinski was driving home from working the late shift when 25-year-old steel worker and volunteer firefighter Chris Galatz was driving passed him going 85 mph. He got worried that the truck Chris was driving might crash. Then suddenly Chris fell asleep at the wheel, crashed into a mailbox, woke up, and tried to stop the truck from going off the road. But it turned over in a ditch, the steering wheel broke Chris' nose off, and the truck started to catch fire. The crash woke Dennis Gilindo and his wife. Dennis got dressed and ran outside to see what happened and saw from the driveway that Chris' truck caught fire and the flames were getting bigger. His wife called 911 and told them that there was a crash by their house. Firefighters and paramedics immediately responded. Meanwhile, Joe was still driving when he saw the mailbox that Chris crashed into got destroyed, broken glass in the road, and Chris' truck in flames. Joe got out of his car, ran to the truck, and thinking Chris got killed, got there, saw that Chris' face was all bloody, and tried to get him out but the door was jammed. Joe ran to another house to call 911. Dennis came back out with a fire extinguisher, got to the truck, tried to get the door open himself, and saw Chris' bloodied face. His nose was split open through the nostril. The fire started to get intense and burning the whole truck. Dennis kept picturing it exploding with Chris inside. Then Joe returned to help Dennis get Chris out of the truck. Joe tried to use Dennis' fire extinguisher to put out the fire, but it didn't work. Meanwhile Chris' wife, Kelly, who was nine months pregnant with twins, was going into labor and tried to call him at the firehouse. Back at the scene, Joe put Dennis in the truck, they got Chris out, and put him on the ground. The truck fully caught fire afterward. Kelly was told that the firefighters were sent to the accident and they would tell Chris there. Hoodland FD Captain Ron Martin arrived, saw Chris, and said he was a firefighter. Chris grabbed his arm and Ron told him that everything will be okay. Firefighter/EMT Barbara Matheson also arrived and took care of Chris while Dennis and Joe watched. Then more firefighters arrived and put out the fire, but then realized that the truck belonged to their fellow firefighter Chris. Ron then realized that he grabbed his arm because he is a close friend of his and then got nervous thinking his twins won't have a father to be with. Ron was also thankful to Dennis and Joe because if they weren't there to help Chris, he would've died from the burns and Ron and the other firefighters would've been unable to save him because it would've been too late. Chris was taken to the hospital, but Kelly's twins were not ready to be born yet. She went to go visit Chris in the hospital. He made a full recovery and the twins were born days later. Chris had his nose reattached and Kelly said he still looks cute with a new nose and he said he's happy for Dennis and Joe for saving him. He later became close friends with them and had a ceremony for them at the firehouse. Dennis said he would've done the same thing if his kids and wife had a accident like Chris did and Joe said he's happy for Chris that he survived to see the twins born. Category:1991 Category:Oregon Category:Motor-Vehicle Accidents Category:Fires